Travis Fedschun
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While U.S.-backed Syrian forces may have declared victory over the Islamic State, the mother of a journalist beheaded by ISIS fighters warns that the fight against the terror group and its associates is not yet over.
Diane Foley, whose son James became the first American to be killed by ISIS fighters in 2014, told “America’s Newsroom” on Monday that while the last ISIS territory has been liberated, the group remains a threat.
“I’m certainly grateful that physical presence has been shrunk, however, the leadership is still at large,” Foley told Fox News. “I fear that the sleeper cells are all around us and there are hundreds of ISIS fighters in this tenuous custody in northern Syria.”
US-BACKED SYRIAN FORCE DECLARES VICTORY OVER ISLAMIC STATE; END OF CALIPHATE
Foley said she is hoping the U.S. will take on the “leadership” of holding people “accountable.”
“Be it through an international tribunal, be it through individual countries taking back their citizens and holding them on trial, holding them accountable,” she told “America’s Newsroom.”
“But it must be addressed because otherwise they will infiltrate our countries and continue their reign of terror.”
Foley, who has since founded the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation in honor of her son who was abducted while covering the Syrian War has a journalist, told Fox News the threat of ISIS can’t be stopped unless terror sympathizers are shown how a “real justice system works.”
ISIS CALIPHATE HAS CRUMBLED AND LAST STRONGHOLD LIBERATED, FOX NEWS HAS LEARNED
“Prosecuting them, putting them away for the rest of their life so that they can pay for their crimes against humanity,” she said. “If we let them go or hold them in these tenuous situations then no justice is served and they just perpetuate their agenda.”
Through the foundation, Foley hopes that the group can work to bring Americans in trouble abroad back home by working with the Trump administration and applauding them for taking on the “very complicated” issue.
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“We must have the backs of our brave Americans who go out into the world, be they as aid workers, educators, journalists,” she said. “We must have their backs should they be kidnapped or unjustly detained.”
Source: Fox News World
As Chicago prepares for dueling rallies over the fallout from Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s office to drop charges against “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett, the head of the city’s police union is demanding justice in the case.
Kevin Graham, president of the Chicago Fraternal Order of Police, told “America’s Newsroom” that authorities believed their case against Smollett was “solid” and thought they would have gotten a conviction.
“This case should have stood trial,” Graham said.
CHICAGO PROSECUTOR KIM FOXX OPEN TO OUTSIDE INVESTIGATION INTO JUSSIE SMOLLETT CASE
Foxx has faced criticism since prosecutors dismissed all 16 felony counts against Smollett, who is black and gay. The “Empire” actor was accused of faking a racist, anti-gay attack on himself in January. Authorities said that in return for the charges being dropped, Smollett agreed to forfeit the $10,000 he put up to get out of jail and completed community service.
Graham said his union is planning a protest outside Foxx’s office Monday, not over the dismissal of the Smollett charges, but from what he called a history of the office: “not prosecuting cases or not prosecuting them fully, having low bonds on people.”
“We are turning people back out onto the streets, and that’s pretty hard when you’re using the court system as a penalty box like a hockey game,” he told “America’s Newsroom.”
As members from the union protest outside of Foxx’s office, a counter-demonstration in support of the embattled prosecutor is expected to be held by the Rev. Jesse Jackson and other clergies. Jackson’s Rainbow/PUSH Coalition said the civil rights leader will join fellow clergy, elected officials, attorneys and community activists for the rally supporting Foxx.
Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx speaking at a news conference in Chicago. (AP)
Jackson said in a statement that the criticism of Foxx is “unreasonable, unjustified and politically motivated.”
Graham, who called the counter-protest “bewildering” because “we’re all looking for justice,” said that outrage and dueling protests could have been avoided if Foxx’s office had simply gone through with prosecuting the case.
“I think many of these people who are having this counter protest, that’s what they’ve been looking for in Chicago — justice,” he said. “And they should be standing behind the police and the F.O.P.”
The police union head said the Illinois law system is “very complicated,” and that the decision to charge Smollett with a Class 4 felony for filing a false police report that cost the city $130,000 shows a need for “improvements in the law.” He also remained hopeful that federal officials look at the case, with particular regard to the envelope that was set with the accusation that Smollett was going to be harmed.
CHICAGO PROSECUTOR KIM FOXX CHIDED BY NATIONAL ATTORNEYS GROUP AFTER JUSSIE SMOLLETT CHARGES DROPPED
“We feel that is a good case for the FBI to look at, that the U.S. attorney could prosecute if they find the facts and circumstances to be what the Chicago PD found,” he told “America’s Newsroom.”
After an intense public backlash, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx said Friday night that she is open to an outside investigation into her office’s dramatic decision to dismiss all charges against Smollett.
In an op-ed for The Chicago Tribune, Foxx admitted that a third-party review into the high-profile case would help maintain transparency.
“I am not perfect, nor is any other prosecutor out there, but ensuring that I and my office have our community’s trust is paramount,” Foxx, who ran on a platform of transparency, wrote.
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While Graham said he was going to wait on a board of directors meeting Tuesday before saying if he believes Foxx should resign, the police union head said he’s gotten calls and emails from “around the country” from those who felt justice was not done. He also said that additional law enforcement agencies are meeting to discuss action’s by Foxx’s office and failure to “prosecute some of the crimes that are going on in Cook County.”
“I do think she’s going to have a problem if this isn’t addressed,” he told “America’s Newsroom.”
Fox News’ Barnini Chakraborty in Chicago and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source: Fox News National
If President Trump follows through with his threat to close the Southern Border with Mexico this week, say goodbye to your avocado toast.
A top distributor and grower of avocados has warned that the U.S. would run out of the fruit in three weeks if imports from Mexico are halted amid any possible border shutdown.
“You couldn’t pick a worse time of year because Mexico supplies virtually 100 percent of the avocados in the U.S. right now,” Steve Barnard, president and chief executive of Mission Produce, told Reuters. “California is just starting and they have a very small crop, but they’re not relevant right now and won’t be for another month or so.”
It wouldn’t just be the ripe fruit affected by any potential disruption in trade. Nearly half of all imported U.S. vegetables and 40 percent of imported fruit are grown in Mexico, according to data from the United States Department of Agriculture reviewed by Reuters.
A top distributor of avocados is warnign that the U.S. may run out of the fruit in three weeks if imports from Mexico are halted if President Trump follows through with his threat to close the Southern Border over the surge of illegal immigrants flooding into the United States. (iStock)
But the growth and popularity of avocados as a healthy dietary choice may catch the attention of Americans if there’s any large-scale disruption.
U.S. consumption of the avocados has increased “significantly” since 2000, according to the Ag Marketing Resource Center. In 2017, Mexico supplied most of the avocados imported into the U.S.
“In 2017 the United States imported $2.6 billion in fresh avocados and exported approximately $28,500 in fresh avocados,” according to the group.
TRUMP MOVES TO CUT AID TO CENTRAL AMERICA, AMID CARAVANS AND FLOOD OF REFUGEES
Trump threatened on Friday to close the Southern Border as early as this week if Mexico does not “immediately stop” the surge of illegal immigrants flooding into the United States.
Trump’s warning comes as Customs and Border Protection officials say March is on pace to exceed 100,000 border apprehensions — the highest monthly total in a decade. According to CBP, last week alone, agents have more than 12,000 migrants in custody.,
“The DEMOCRATS have given us the weakest immigration laws anywhere in the World. Mexico has the strongest, & they make more than $100 Billion a year on the U.S.,” Trump said on Twitter. “Therefore, CONGRESS MUST CHANGE OUR WEAK IMMIGRATION LAWS NOW, & Mexico must stop illegals from entering the U.S. through their country and our Southern Border.”
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“Mexico for many years made a fortune off of the U.S., far greater than Border Costs. If Mexico doesn’t immediately stop ALL illegal immigration coming into the United States through[sic] our Southern Border, I will be CLOSING the Border, or large sections of the Border, next week,” the president added.
The president’s tweets came after similar threats to close the Southern Border, with Trump accusing Mexico and Central American nations of doing “nothing” as illegal immigration surges.
Over the weekend, the president moved to cut direct aid to El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, whose citizens are fleeing north and overwhelming U.S. resources — including as part of organized caravans.
Fox News’ Brooke Singman, Gregg Re, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source: Fox News Politics
U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., may be the youngest member of Congress at the moment, but that could change if a Republican millennial from Florida is able to unseat a Democrat in the November 2020 election.
Armani Salado, 23, is looking to challenge two-term Democratic Rep. Stephanie Murphy in Florida’s 7th Congressional District, an area that covers Seminole County and portions of Orange County in the central part of the state.
“It’s pretty simple, I’m running because it’s time to get representatives into Washington, not activists,” Salado told “Fox & Friends” on Monday.
ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ FALSELY CLAIMS REPUBLICANS AMENDED CONSTITUTION TO KICK FDR OUT OF OFFICE
Armani Salado, 23, says that voters want representatives, not activists, in Washington. (Fox News)
Salado, a history major at the University of Central Florida, will turn 25 five months before the 2020 general election, making him eligible to run for the House of Representatives.
“We have people in there coming in with their own personal agendas, their own personal vendettas against our president and against our nation,” he told “Fox & Friends.” “I feel like the people of America need someone there who is going to want to represent their will and not their personal agenda and not satisfy their ego that they have coming from their own district.”
The 23-year-old said he came up with the idea to run for Congress back in Fall 2018, after watching then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh get “dragged through the dirt” by members of the media and those in Congress.
“As soon as I saw that I was like no, I need to get involved now,” he said.
OCASIO-CORTEZ: WE REACTED TO 9/11, SO WHERE’S THE REACTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE?
“We don’t need activists, we need representatives and we need people willing to be bridges that will allow our best minds from our communities to go to Washington.”
Salado, originally from Boston, said he feels a sense of patriotism and has a “connection” to the nation’s founders. He also said he finds inspiration from what he studied in college. The 23-year-old drew a parallel to James Monroe, who dropped out of college to join the Continental Army, which Salado said he sees himself doing “the same thing.”
“I’m not saying that we’re in this war, but we kind of are in this battle to protect our American values and to protect the pillars that hold up our society and that’s why I threw myself into this race so early on in my life,” he said Monday.
The college student and former actor said that his only worried is that people will only attack him because of his age.
“I think the only thing that people will of course attack me on is my lack of experience in the political arena but I feel like that should maybe be something people hold onto,” he said.
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Salado pointed again to the nation’s founding fathers, who were all young and “doing magnificent things in unconventional times,” and that his background in history and political science will allow him to bring something else to Congress.
“I will be able to be a bridge to allow the people to work with me,” he said. “We don’t need activists, we need representatives and we need people willing to be bridges that will allow our best minds from our communities to go to Washington. I don’t want to be another know-it-all bureaucrat.”
Source: Fox News Politics
A father of 3 has been missing since Friday after a boating accident in Northern California. (FOX40)
Authorities in California are searching for a father of 3 who has been missing since Friday after a boating accident that left a 1-year-old seriously injured.
The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release the incident happened around 11:30 a.m. on the San Joaquin River near Isleton, located about 40 miles south of Sacramento.
Officers received a 911 call from a 10-year-old child who explained that her 1-year-old brother fell out of a boat while the children were fishing with their 41-year-old father.
“The child indicated her father dove into the river after the child and related the child was wearing a life vest; however, her father was not,” the sheriff’s office said.
GRANDMOTHER, 79, KILLED BY AMTRAK TRAIN REPORTEDLY SHOVED GRANDDAUGHTER TO SAFETY
Officials from the U.S. Coast Guard located the boat as it was drifting in the waterway and rescued the children inside. Coast Guard officials then were able to find the child floating in the river.
“First responders immediately began performing life-saving measures on the child, including CPR, as the child did not initially have a pulse,” the sheriff’s office said.
The U.S. Coast Guard located the boat with the children driving in the San Joaquin River on Friday. (FOX40)
The child was transported to a California Highway Patrol helicopter and transported to a Sacramento-area hospital, where he had a pulse on arrival and was listed in serious condition.
“Search crews from the Sheriff’s Office are still combing the area and will continue searching depending on conditions,” officials said. “The river in this area is approximately 50 degrees and due to heavy rainfall and runoff in our region, the river is flowing very fast.”
Sacramento County Sheriff’s Sergeant Shaun Hampton told FOX40 that the river is filled with water that is cold and filled with debris, which makes for a dangerous combination for any person in distress.
CALIFORNIA DRIVER KILLED AFTER VEHICLE GOES OFF CLIFF, PLUNGES 500 FEET, OFFICIALS SAY
Family members identified the man as 41-year-old Moua Lo, and said he jumped in after his son as any parent would.
“He would be the first person to give you his jacket if he sees that you’re in need. He would stop to help anybody,” brother-in-law Chong Yang told FOX40.
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Friends and family members held a candlelight vigil on Saturday night and were hopeful as agencies continue to search the shoreline.
“The family is really hurt. We’re not giving up,” Yang told the television station. “We want to make sure we recover him and hopefully we’ll be able to get that done soon.”
Source: Fox News National
An Uber driver was arrested after a woman reported being sexually assaulted in Boston early Saturday, according to officials.
Massachusetts State Police said in a news release that officers received a report around 1:15 a.m. that a woman had been sexually assaulted by an Uber driver on Storrow Drive near the Hatch Memorial Shell in Boston.
A preliminary investigation by officials led to the arrest of the driver, 37-year-old Daudah Mayanja of Waltham, on two counts of rape.
SOUTH CAROLINA MAN CHARGED WITH KIDNAPPING AND MURDER OF UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA STUDENT
“State Police Crime Scene Services personnel and an MSP chemist collected potential evidence for forensic analysis,” state police said.
The victim is an adult female, who was transported to an area hospital for treatment.
While still in police custody, Mayanja told WCVB-TV in a phone interview on Saturday he was innocent.
“That information that aired outside is wrong and false,” Mayanja told the television station. “She jumped from the backseat to the driver’s seat. When I pulled over, she jumped out from the car, (and) I left the scene. I called my bosses because, after, I noticed that she left her bag inside my car. I called the Uber offices to tell them about the situation.”
In a statement to Boston 25 News, Uber called the incident “horrible.”
“What’s been reported is horrible and something no one should ever go through,” the company told Boston 25. “We stand ready to support law enforcement with their investigation.”
INSTAGRAM MODEL, 26, WHO WAS CAUGHT KICKING SMALL DOG ON VIDEO GETS PROBATION
The company added that it’s increasing its safety features and that riders can call 911 directly through the app while sharing their location with their GPS technology.
Some Uber riders, however, said incidents like the one on Saturday make them cautious about using the service.
“That’s really scary,” Boston resident Molly Hanlon told Boston 25 News. “I know my mom always warns me, she’s always worried about Uber and I think it’s obviously important to be aware, make sure they know your name. But it’s scary, it’s things that you don’t think happen.”
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State police said they are still investigating the incident. Mayanja is being held on $25,000 bail and is set to be arraigned at Boston Municipal Court on Monday, according to police.
Source: Fox News National
A sheriff’s deputy and veteran in Missouri went above the call of duty earlier this month after spotting an American flag on a broken flagpole that was nearly on the ground.
The Clay County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post the incident happened on March 15 in Avondale after a storm had passed through the region and Deputy Brandon McElroy was driving through the neighborhood.
Video from a Ring doorbell camera sent into the sheriff’s office by the homeowner shows McElroy slow down in front of the house, turn around and get out after noticing the flag partially draped on the ground.
“Seeing the flag down, my first reaction was to do the right thing and make sure to show respect and pick it up off the ground,” McElroy told “Fox & Friends.” “I’m not necessarily on the lookout for it, but driving in that area I’ve always noticed his flagpole up with the flag waving, and driving through that area that particular morning I noticed it was down and just had to pick it up.”
In the video released by the sheriff’s office, McElroy can be seen going onto the front yard and removing the flag from the broken pole before respectfully folding it up on the front porch of the home.
“It means a lot to me,” he said Sunday. “Growing up, you show your respect to the flag. Doing little things such as making sure it doesn’t touch the ground or picking it up off the ground, just little things you can show it respect.”
The sheriff’s deputy served for 7 1/2 years with the Air Force at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri as a security forces member.
At the time, McElroy said he didn’t realize that there was a doorbell camera recording him. It was hours later that day when he was approached by the homeowner’s wife who thanked him for his kind deed.
He told “Fox & Friends” he strives to make sure to always do the right thing, even when nobody is watching.
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“Something as small as that cloth represents a lot in this country, whether it’s the men and women that have died for it or the men and women that wear it to this day serving our country so we can have our freedoms that we have and enjoy the things that we do on an everyday basis,” he said.
Source: Fox News National
A fire burning through Penn State Forest in Burlington County, New Jersey has sent smoke north, leading residents in New York City to report the smell of smoke. (Ocean County Sheriff’s Office)
A forest fire fueled by wind in southern New Jersey that has burned thousands of acres has sent billowing smoke far north enough that residents in New York are able to smell it.
The Ocean County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post the blaze was located in Burlington County just west of the Ocean County line.
“Smoke from this fire is blowing northward and can be seen in Toms River and points north,” the agency said. “The Forest Fire Service, as well as many local fire departments, are on location.”
The blaze in Washington Township closed Route 72 in Barnegat between Routes 532 and 539 until further notice because of smoke, FOX29 reported.
The fire was burning through the Penn State Forest, which the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protected describes as “undeveloped wilderness” that attracts picnickers and hikers. The forest is part of the Pine Barrens, which contains several areas of pine and oak forest.
Larry Hajna, a spokesman for the DEP, told NJ.com the blaze named the “Spring Hill Wildfire” had grown to 5,000 acres by 10 p.m. on Saturday and was only 10 percent contained. The fire is burning in an area of woodlands with few structures, and no evacuations have been ordered.
CALIFORNIA TOWN DESTROYED BY FIRE ISSUES 1ST REBUILD PERMITS
The blaze was fueled by high winds in the area, which also sent the smoke northward. The smoke plume from the blaze was large enough to show up on radar, according to the National Weather Service.
The NWS’ Mount Holly Office reported that residents in northern and central New Jersey reported smelling smoke, and said the reason it was not dispersing was because of “a nocturnal inversion.”
“If you’ve ever burned some food in the kitchen and then had to either open windows and/or turn on fans to disperse the smoke, there is a similar concept going on here,” the NWS said. “When an inversion is in place (temperatures are increasing with height) then any air below the inversion are trapped below the inversion. As a result, the air near the surface can’t mix with air higher up or be dispersed by the stronger winds above the inversion.”
That applies for anyone who may be downstream of the fire, where the smoke is being pushed by winds.
Many took to Twitter on Sunday morning to show the clouds of smoke from the blaze and report smelling smoke upwards of 50 miles away, including on New York’s Staten Island.
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The NWS said that conditions are expected to improve Sunday throughout the day as showers move through the area and a cold front shifts the winds offshore later in the day.
Source: Fox News National
A strong 6.2 magnitude earthquake was reported off the coast of Ecuador early Sunday, but there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
The United States Geological Survey said the temblor occurred around 3 a.m. ET about 16 miles north of Santa Elena along the coast.
The quake struck at a depth of about 11 miles, according to the agency. The European-Mediterranean Seismological Center reported that there were also numerous aftershocks following the initial quake.
7.5 MAGNITUDE EARTHQUAKE STRIKES NEAR ECUADOR-PERU BORDER, USGS SAYS
The 6.2 magnitude earthquake was reported about 16 miles north of Santa Elena along the coast, according to the USGS. (USGS)
No damage has been reported so far, but some people reported being awakened from sleep by the shaking.
7.1-MAGNITUDE EARTHQUAKE HITS SOUTHERN PERU
Ecuador lies along the Pacific’s so-called “Ring of Fire,” a 25,000-mile horseshoe-shaped ring, accounting for approximately 90 percent of the world’s earthquakes, according to the USGS.
The region is the location of most of Earth’s subduction zones, where oceanic plates slide under the lighter continental plates. Earthquakes tend to happen when those plates scrape or subside underneath each other, and when that happens at sea it can spawn tsunamis.
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The region also contains 452 volcanoes, more than 75 percent of the world’s active and dormant volcanoes.
Fox News’ Chris Ciaccia contributed to this report.
Source: Fox News World
Authorities in North Carolina would have to hold defendants in jail if requested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials under a bill that cleared its first hurdle on Wednesday.
A House judiciary panel approved House Bill 370, a measure sponsored by North Carolina Republican lawmakers unhappy with recent decisions by newly elected sheriffs to stop assisting federal immigration agents.
"These sanctuary sheriffs are putting politics ahead of public safety," said Rep. Destin Hall, a chief sponsor of the bill, said during a committee meeting.
BORDER HITS ‘BREAKING POINT’ IN EL PASO, CBP COMMISSIONER SAYS
Hall’s bill would require sheriffs in all counties to fulfill ICE detainer requests, which can be used to hold criminal suspects up to 48 hours. Those holdings currently aren’t mandatory.
"No matter what these sheriffs do, ICE has a job to do," Hall said Wednesday. "When sheriffs don’t cooperate with them, they still have that duty to enforce federal immigration law, and they’re going to do that. Except, instead of doing it in the jail — a controlled environment that’s much more safe — they’re going to do it out in the community."
House Bill 370 would require sheriffs in North Carolina to fulfill ICE detainer requests, which can be used to hold criminal suspects up to 48 hours. These holdings currently aren’t mandatory. (AP Photo)
Sheriffs elected last year in urban areas in and around Raleigh, Asheville and Durham have announced they won’t honor these requests.
In response to those actions, ICE stepped up immigration raids in the state because of the decreased cooperation, with the regional director calling the heightened presence the "new normal," WRAL reported.
LARGE ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT GROUPS CROSSING US-MEXICO BORDER PUSHING AGENTS TO ‘BREAKING POINT’
Immigration advocates and some state Democrats have come out opposing the measure, with one lawmaker called it a "gross overreach" by the government to take power away from locally-elected sheriffs, The Winston-Salem Journal reported.
“Who are we to tell our elected law-enforcement officers how they should behave,” Rep. Wesley Harris said during the hearing.
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Those opposed to the measure are already urging Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper to veto any final bill that comes to him.
A spokesperson for the governor told the Journal that Cooper has "serious concerns" about taking away local authority from sheriffs.
“The governor will review any legislation that comes to his desk before making a decision,” Cooper spokesman Jamal Little told the newspaper.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source: Fox News National
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